tutorials

One of my favorite things (and I’m sure it’s one of your favorites, too) is a quick easy hairstyle. If you’ve ever had a long night and/or a bad hair morning and/or just felt super lazy before rushing off to work, you need to learn this quick trick. All you need is two hands, a little hair refreshing mist and 4 large bobby pins. Take that slept in hair (that was so nicely curled yesterday) and do this…

Gently brush or even finger comb any tangles out of the hair.

Pick a spray any spray! You can do a sea spray or a hair refresher. Either one will do the trick, depending on your hair type. For fine limp hair go with a sea spray to add texture, and for thicker coarser hair, refresher spray to calm and control.

Spray a few pumps throughout the hair.

Don’t forget to hit the ends!

All you do is hold your ponytail in the middle of your head (near the occipital bone which is that bone in the back of your head. Twist the ponytail clockwise. It will start to twist/coil itself under. At that point you’ll get a downward french twist look. Hold the ponytail tight at the nape of your neck and use this guide to slide in your large bobby pins. I advise doing the vertical one from the bottom first. That way the other pins cross over it horizontally and lock onto it.

That’s literally it. It’s so simple but still looks pretty chic if you ask us. If you try this look, let us know! Tag in your instagram photo at @thebeautydept!

tutorials

No one is endorsing a long night of drinking! But hey, it does happen. And even a couple glasses of wine can show up in our skin the next morning. The bottom line is, alcohol is dehydrating. You have to replenish the fluids on the inside and the outside! My advice: if you can drink a glass of water for each serving of alcohol, your body will thank you. And chug water before you go to sleep. Not too much that you’ll have to get up a lot to go to the bathroom because sleep is important for your skin too. Then try these tricks to make the most of your makeup the next day instead of having it work against you:

TIP #1: Switch from a foundation or mineral powder foundation to a tinted moisturizer. You want one that really hydrates your skin like this one ($$) or this one ($). A BB Cream or a CC Cream is great too if you pick one that isn’t mattifying and doesn’t just sit on top of the skin.

TIP #2: Bring a little life back to your face with a Face Gloss or Face Balm. After applying tinted moisturizer all over your face and neck, rub a few drops in between your fingers then pat and tap your fingers under your eyes, along your cheekbones and anywhere that needs a little love. This step really does the trick!

Then finish the look with Cream Blush instead of Powder Blush, a Pink Lip Gloss (in shade #15) or Tinted Lip Balm (not the time to rock a bold matte lip!) and Mascara. Drink electrolyte water throughout the day, switch to high anti-oxidant green tea, take vitamins and you’re good to go!

tutorials

A couple months ago we shared how to fight wrinkles with our Red Light LED Therapy Tutorial. We got so many requests for the blue version in the comments that I researched, polled my colleagues, asked my dermatologist and found the three that we found work the best. Here’s why a blue light LED at-home handheld device is the bomb to fight acne:

It helps kill bacteria that causes many of your breakouts.

It helps clear up existing acne.

It helps prevent future blemishes.

It calms the inflammation and gets your skin to mellow out.

It’s safe for sensitive skin!

Because it’s not a cream/toner/lotion, you don’t have to worry about it drying out your skin, irritating it or having a reaction from it. But you can use a Blue Light LED device in conjunction with your favorite acne skincare.

TBD FAVES:

Brook is using the Pulsaderm Blue above because its head covers a big area at once and it really calms my flare ups helping my skin clear up.

We also like the Revive LED Therapy because it made a dramatic difference in my cousin’s skin and it’s on sale right now!

Lastly, the Tanda Zap is awesome for when a big blemish has parked itself on your face because it targets it not only with a blue LED light but also with sonic vibration and a light warming to get it to chill out fast.

STEPS:

After washing your face, pat it dry. Put on the safety googles that come with the handheld device (I didn’t photograph her wearing them because it crushed my flow!) or place moistened cotton pads over each eye, but then you need to meditate or talk on the phone as you won’t be able to see instead of what you can do in step 2!

Sit down to watch TV or YouTube or while sitting at your desk or on your laptop, hold the device over each affected area for 3 minutes.

Repeat daily and you’ll start to notice a difference within one week! My chin has been a nightmare this winter with acne and a rash-like dermatitus redness thing that’s way harsh, Tai! But 5 days with my Pulsaderm handheld and it calmed down and cleared up.

tutorials

There’s nothing that bums me out more than trying really hard not to get mascara on my lid and it still happening! Argh! But who has the time to get a business card, guitar pick or another prop to use as a guard? Not me. So I figured out a way to apply it without getting a mark on the lid. Not one mark! Every single time! Here’s the trick:

When you apply with both eyes open, the bristles sneak through the lashes and end up on your lid. How uncouth! But do we really need to see with both eyes open? Nope. You can use the other eye to see what you’re doing. You have to trust me on this one. When you close the eye that you are applying mascara to, it will NOT get on your lid. But there are a few techniques to do it.

STEPS:

Close the eye that you are about to apply mascara to. Keep the other eye open obviously!